To Catch a Lie
by Nasecoeur42
Summary: *FORMERLY DON'T TELL SOKKA* So as to not give it all away: Story takes place 5 years after the fall of Ozai. Romance, action, suspense and friends will play a part as the Gaang try to live their lives and heal the world Kataang-heavy, Soki, Toru, Muko
1. Chapter 1

_Hi Everybody!_

_Nasecoeur here, and I'm super excited to announce a new story! This one is a first for me, as it is a multi-chapter! I know it has been a long while since I wrote a fanfiction, and I actually wasn't planning on writing another one, but so many people favorited my old stories I just couldn't resist! I have the first 7 or so chapters written, and I will post one a week, or every 5 reviews, whichever comes first. And I promise each chapter will have at least 1,000 words of story and it will be worth the wait. _

_The title I have is a work in progress, it may change, and if it does, I'll give you fare-warning. Lemme know of any titles you think would work, because I've been having a really tough time thinking of one for this story._

_This fanfiction is rated T. I'm not sure how strong of a T this will end up being, right now it is more as a safety feature, but if that changes, I will let you know as well._

_So, without further ado, I present "Don't Tell Sokka"_

_Enjoy!_

_DISCLAIMER: I, Nasecoeur am the sole owner of anything in this story that does not already have a copyright to it. This means I do not own Avatar: TLA. Sad day. :( _

The night was perfect. Aang had everything planned out. Tonight was the five year anniversary of Fire Lord Ozia's defeat, and the New Fire Lord, Zuko, was throwing a ball in honor of the Avatar and his companions. Tonight was also the night Aang would ask Katara to marry him. Aang looked around the giant ball room where the celebration was being held. He, Katara, Toph, Haru, Sokka and Suki, Hakoda, Pakku, and Teo were all seated at the head table along with Zuko, his wife, Mai, and several other diplomats.

To Aang's left sat a girl with chocolate toned skin and cerulean colored eyes. She was wearing a form fitting cream colored gown with blue accents that was made out of silk. The gown reached just above her ankle, but the right leg had a slit that went to about two inches above her knee. Her brother threw a fit when he saw the dress on her the first time; Aang on the other hand had a problem keeping his eyes off her. Her hair was half up in some intricate bun, and the other half lay down across her back.

Aang grabbed her hand and she looked up from a conversation and smiled at him. Aang and Katara finally started dating soon after the fire lord had fallen, and they had been inseparable ever since. Aang leaned over Katara and put his mouth right next to her ear. She could feel his hot breath and it made her heart skip a beat.

He whispered, "You looked beautiful tonight, did you know?"

She smiled and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. "Why thank you. You don't look too bad yourself."

Aang smirked and was about to give his girlfriend another kiss when he felt a hand grab the back of his collar.

"Hey, no public displays of affection. Do I need to separate you to?" Sokka said with a grin.

Katara rolled her eyes, even though she was 19, he still acted like she was a little girl sometimes. "How about you go take care of your wife? She might get angry you aren't over there, and you know how those mood swings get…"

Sokka's eyes widen considerable, and he promptly let go of Aang's shirt and went to check of his wife, Suki.

Sokka and Suki finally got married about a year ago, and Suki was three months pregnant with their first child.

Katara turned her attention back to Aang, "Now, where were we?"

Aang put his finger up to her lips, "You know Sokka's right. We should try to set an example."

Katara gave a defeated sigh and nodded her head in agreement, "Fine, but later, you owe me."

Aang gave a smirk that wasn't much different than the one his 12-year-old–self would have gave, "It would be my pleasure." With that, they both sat back in their chairs and looked around to see who else was in the room.

Toph sat on Katara's left, with her fiancé Haru in tow. That was one couple that no one ever expected, but everyone was excited when they did get engage. Katara would, of course, be Toph's maid of honor, and Haru still hadn't told who he wanted as a best man, but most everyone suspected that it would be Teo, as the two became quick friends after the defeat on the day of the eclipse. Teo found his seat next to Haru and Hakoda, and Master Pakku sat next to him.

To Aang's right sat Firelord Zuko, at the center of the head table. He was actively involved in a conversation with his wife Mai, who was about 8 months pregnant with her and Zuko's second child. The Fire Lord and Lady got married about a year after the defeat of Ozai and have been happy ever since. Their first child, a son named Li, was two years old and was happily awaiting the arrival of his new sibling.

Aang looked around the room again. It seemed as if most people were settling down to hear the speech that Zuko would soon give. Aang's hands started to sweat. He had planned this out for months, but he was still nervous. He reached his hand into his right pocket and felt the cool stone from the betrothal necklace that lay there.

After getting Sokka and Hakoda's permission, Aang decided he was going to ask Katara to marry him. He spent many sleepless nights over trying to find the best time to tell her, and how to tell her in a way so he couldn't get nervous and back out. That was when the invitation for the ball arrived. Zuko had also sent a letter requesting that Aang make a speech at the ball. Though he wasn't a big public speaker, Aang agreed, on the condition that Zuko wouldn't mind if he proposed during his speech.

Zuko was thrilled and said it would be no problem. Aang then went to find Sokka to ask him if he thought Katara would mind. Sokka responded by giving Aang a whack on the side of the head saying, "Why would you even think such a thing? The only thing she could possibly wonder would be what took you so long?"

Aang smiled to himself at the memory, but was brought out of his musing by the sound of a knife on a glass.

Zuko stood up and began, "First off, I would like to thank everyone who was able to make it to this celebration tonight. We are here to celebrate the anniversary of the fall of Fire Lord Ozai, the end of the hundred years of war, and the start of a new era of peace among the four nations."

Cheers erupted through the room.

"We are also here to honor and congratulate four people who, by far, played the biggest part in ending the war. May I present the greatest earthbender alive, Toph Bei Fong,"

Cheers rang through again as she stood and waved.

"Brave Warrior of the Southern Water Tribe, Sokka,"

Cat calls were heard through the cheers, as Sokka stood and beamed.

"Waterbending Master of the Southern Water Tribe, Katara,"

If possible, more cheers and cat calls were heard. Aang could feel a pang of jealousy at this, but quickly brushed it away.

"And finally, the one who ended it all, The Avatar and the Last Airbender, Avatar Aang." It seemed as if the room had exploded with cheers and clapping as Aang shyly stood up and waved. He really didn't care for the hero worship, but it seemed to come with the title of Avatar.

Aang remained standing as Zuko finished his introductions, "Now, I have asked the avatar to say a few words in honor of this memorable day from history, so I turn the floor over to Avatar Aang." Applause was heard as Zuko sat down. Aang took a deep breath to try and settle his nerves. Speaking in front of all these people was bad enough, but by the end of the speech, his life was going to change, either of better or worse, he didn't know yet, that depended on Katara's answer.

"Thank you Fire Lord Zuko. As all of you recall, five years ago today, the world was changed. War was finally over and the generations of people that had only seen war, were now seeing peace. If it weren't for the brave men and women who stood up against Ozai and the Fire Nation in the years prior to that fateful summer day, I, _we, _wouldn't have even had the opportunity to end the war.

"On that note, I would also like to take this time to apologize. Though there are some that disagree with me on this," Aang gave a quick pointed look at Katara and Sokka, "I still feel that if I hadn't disappeared a hundred and five years ago, that this war could have been avoided. So I'm sorry that you and your families had to suffer through a century of pain and death.

"Now though, we have started a new chapter of life. A time of rebuilding, a time of peace. I'm very thankful that the road to peace has been as smooth as it has, and that the water tribes and the earth kingdom have been open and willing to discuss peace and trading with Fire Lord Zuko. Though war can be started by just a few, it takes everyone to make and keep peace.

"Also, though I tend to get most of the credit for ending this war, there are many people that did so much more than me. Every single one of them jumped at the opportunity to end the war, even though they knew it could have also ended their life. Though I know there isn't enough time to go through each and every person, There are a few people that should get recognized for their hard work and bravery.

"First off, Sokka, thank you for everything you have done. I know you weren't too fond of me when I first came out of that Iceberg, but we never could have done what we did without your leadership, confidence, fighting skills, knack for invention, and of course, humor.

"Suki, thank you for helping Sokka become a better person and learn that just because someone is different, doesn't mean that they are inferior.

"Master Pakhu, if it weren't for you, I never would have learned waterbending. I will always be grateful that you continued to agree to teach me even when I would disobey you and your customs. Chief Hakoda, thank you for your help with…everything. It is because of you and your men we were able to invade the fire nation.

"Teo, thank you for showing me that even though my people are gone, their spirit lives on, and though he couldn't be here today, I would also like to thank Teo's Father, the wonderful mechanist**,** for all of his magnificent inventions.

"Toph, thank you so very much for never giving up on teaching me earth bending. I'm not sure what I would have done if it weren't for you. You taught me a great deal, including how to take a punch.

"Retired General Iroh, thank you for the countless time that you gave me or one of my friends advice. Thank you also, for never giving up on Zuko and for helping him learn who he truly was.

"Fire lord Zuko, though we started out as enemies, I'm glad that we ended up as friends. Thank you for helping me escape when I was captured by Admiral Zhao, and even though we were rude and mean, thank you for continuing to try and join our group to teach me firebending. I learn a great deal about overcoming obstacles and making your own destiny from you.

"And finally, Thank you to my girlfriend Katara. Thank you for releasing me from that Iceberg almost 6 years ago. Thank you for sticking up for me when your brother thought I was a spy. Thank you for helping when I was in the Avatar State. Thank you for always being there, even when I would say or do something stupid. And thank you for showing me that just because I was the Avatar, didn't mean I couldn't be Aang also. And, I have something for you actually," Aang paused for a second to reach into his pocket, and a series of whispers echoed through the room. Aang glanced at Sokka, and he gave him a thumbs up. "Katara, you have always been there for me, and I want to always be there for you. I love you so very much, and have ever since I asked you to go penguin sledding. " He got down on one knee and showed her the necklace. "Katara, would you marry me?"

_:) I couldn't resist a cliff-hanger! Lemme know what you think, and as always, constructive criticism is always appreciated, but flamers will be doused with water._

_Till next time,_

_Nasecoeur_


	2. Chapter 2

_I am impressed and honored! 5 reviews within the first 12 hours of my story being up! Hopefully I can finish it fast enough if this rate keeps going! _

_Thank you kindly for all of the reviews, hits and favorites I have already received. It truly makes me smile. :)_

_As promised, here is the second chapter! This one isn't as cliffhanger-y as the first._

_Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: As before, I do not own Avatar: TLA. I do still own everything in this story that no one has heard of or thought of before._

_Previously_

_He got down on one knee and showed her the necklace. "Katara, would you marry me?" _

A collective gasp was heard, followed by a silence so quiet a pin drop could have been heard. All eyes were on Katara. She looked extremely surprised. She opened her mouth as if to answer but nothing came out. Aang, fearing that she couldn't find the words to turn him down, started to stand up. Katara saw this and jumped up into his arms and gave him a kiss.

The hall erupted again with applause.

Aang just stood there in shock for a moment before he started passionately kissing his fiancé back. The kiss the two shared was so intense that a few people looked away embarrassed. Sokka looked at the two of them, and was moved by how sweet their kiss was. He continued to watch and realized that they were still kissing a good 15 seconds later. He gave a loud cough to get their attention. It startled the two love birds and they looked at him and blushed.

Sokka gave Aang a pointed glare that said, 'Be careful, you aren't married yet, I can still murder you' and Aang took Katara's hand and led her back to her seat.

After the hall had quieted down again, Zuko stood up once more. "Now that the formalities and life-altering questions are out of the way, please enjoy that ball and congratulations on five years of peace!"

The band started playing an upbeat tune and everyone started dancing. Sokka went over to Katara to give her a hug and to say congratulations. "Hey, you worried me for a second when you didn't answer. I thought Aang was going to die."

Katara blushed a bit, "I was taken by surprise. Then when I noticed that I was suppose to answer, it was like I forgot how to speak."

Aang mumbled, hoping Sokka wouldn't hear him, "I'm sure glad you forgot how to speak." But he was soon given a punch in the shoulder.

"Careful there soon-to-be brother-in-law, you may be the Avatar, but I've been told I'm pretty good with a sword. I really could make sure there would be no more airbenders, if you get my drift."

Aang gulped and nodded

"Sokka, stop scaring him. Come on Aang, let's dance." And with that, Katara swept Aang onto the dance floor.

After about an hour of fast upbeat tunes, a slow ballad was played. Katara was resting her head against Aang's chest and his chin was sitting on the top of her head as they swayed in time with the music. Katara didn't even hear the music playing, she was thinking about the man she was next to. She started wondering about how much Aang had really changed in the past five years.

Right before he turned 14, he hit a growth spurt that made him a good inch taller than Sokka. Now, if he needed to get the attention of someone, he got it. His voice had dropped about an octave which also helped in getting attention. He also became extremely muscular. That was one thing that Katara loved. She loved being able to feel all of the ridges and creases his muscles made when he moved. His face lengthened out a bit, but he still had the same gray eyes he always had. Katara loved his eyes. She could look into them all day and never get tired of it. She felt like she was seeing him for the first time whenever she stared into his eyes. It didn't even bug her that he made fun of her for it, for she caught him staring at her eyes more than once also.

Katara had also grown up in the last five years. Her curves had become more defined, and it seemed as if her legs got even longer than they had been before. Her face still held the shape it always had and her eyes were the same color blue that could put Aang in a trance after a glance.

"So, does this make up for me not being able to kiss you earlier?" Katara was drawn back into reality by the sound of Aang's voice.

Katara smirked. "I guess it does, but I'm not sure. I mean, yeah I did get my kiss, but I did have to agree to _marry_ you to get that."

Aang chuckled. "Ah, I see, well in that case, it seems I still have a debt to you."

"That you do."

Aang leaned down a kissed that top of Katara's head, "We will have to see about settling that sometime soon."

"Yes we will." Katara tried to lean up to steal a kiss but Aang stopped her. "Careful, I don't want to die before I say 'I do'."

She understood. There were under the ever vigilant eye of her brother. The debt would have to be settled later.

The party continued on for a few hours. After talking to, what felt like, several hundred diplomats, Aang went to find Katara and to walk home.

Being the Avatar did have its perks. For instance, Aang had at least one house in every nation. He also owned all the air temples since he was the last Airbender. He had no problem letting other people use them, as long as they took care of them, and as long as it wasn't the southern air temple. The Southern Air Temple was where Aang had called his home after the war, even though he was only there a few times a year.

With all of these houses at his disposal, he always invited Toph, Haru, Sokka, and Suki to stay with him when they were traveling. Katara always did stay with him, but in separate rooms. When they first started dating, Aang and Katara made a promise to Sokka that they wouldn't have sex until they got married and they had stuck by that. They would very often sleep in each other's arms, happy enough in the fact that the other one was there. Sokka had walked in on them sleeping a few times, and though it took him a while to get use to the idea, he was soon alright with the two of them sleeping together…as long as all their clothes stayed on.

Aang had found a bored looking Katara being told some story that was probably about money or power. Aang politely interrupted and gave Katara a kiss on the cheek then whispered, "Katara, you ready to go?"

"Yes, I am," She turned to the man she was talking with, "I apologize, but it is getting late, I need to go and find my brother and make sure his wife got home safely. I enjoyed talking to you." And she and Aang walked away hand in hand.

"Wow." Aang started, "I can't believe how quickly you came up with the words to excuse yourself."

"Are you kidding? I had that thought up about ten minutes ago, I was just waiting for someone to rescue me."

Aang smiled at her, "Well, here I am! Your Avatar in shining armor." He then kissed her hand.

Katara gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek, "Why thank you kind Avatar." Katara spoke with a very regal, and very fake, tone to her voice. Aang chuckled and bowed before taking her hand and continuing their walk home.

_As always, let me know what you think. Please use constructive criticism. I am a big girl and my feelings won't be hurt, I promise! Until next time!_

_Nasecoeur_


	3. Chapter 3

_Hello!_

_Thank you again for all the reviews! I'm sorry I didn't update at 5 reviews this time, my best friend was having a baby so I was with her at the hospital. Now that mom and baby are both doing well, I am able to update. Because I've gotten 10 reviews since my last update, I combined the next two chapters. This means a cliff-hanger is gone-you're welcome. :) This also means this chapter is twice as long as the last have been. Please enjoy!_

_Disclaimer- I don't own Avatar:LTA, but, as of 2:22, I DO have a beautiful god-daughter!_

_Previously_

_Aang chuckled and bowed before taking her hand and continuing their walk home._

A few minutes later, Aang and Katara came to the house they were given. It was a massive house with a living room, dining room, kitchen, five bedrooms and many other nameless rooms.

Aang opened the door for Katara and the two of them slipped silently into the house. Suki and Sokka were probably already asleep since they had left about an hour earlier. Aang hadn't seen Toph or Haru for a few hours, but they always seemed to disappear.

Aang had a master bedroom that was down a separate hall from all the others. Katara and Aang silently made their way to his room and were successful in not making a sound until the door to the room was shut.

Katara sat down on the bed and pulled off her shoes. She had noticed that Aang was just staring at her, so she looked up at him questiongly.

He quickly closed the space between them and pushed Katara backwards onto the bed.

"Aang? What-" She was interrupted by a kiss. Aang rubbed his tongue against her bottom lip, begging for entrance and Katara gladly accepted. Their tongues wrestled for a few minutes before they both pulled away for a much needed breath.

Aang leaned forward and whispered in Katara's ear, "I thought I'd clear my debt now…" He then gently nipped at her lobe, causing a soft moan from Katara. Aang quickly forgot about her ear and gave butterfly kisses up and down her neck, stopping to give extra care to the spot just above her collarbone.

During this, Katara was gently dragging her fingernails up and down Aang's back and chest. She made sure to give extra attention to the arrow on his back, as she knew that the nerves there were overly sensitive, but she soon found his shirt to be in the way.

Katara ran her hands back down Aang's back, and grasped the bottom of his shirt and pulled it up. Aang only stopped kissing her enough to get the shirt over his head, and then he promptly went back to work. Katara moaned again as she felt Aang's hand caressing her leg behind her knee. She felt her heartbeat speed up as his hand move past her knee and up past her inner thigh…

The first conscious thought Katara had the next morning had been that she was very comfortable. She tried to snuggle into what she thought was a pillow, but soon realized that this thing was too hard for a pillow. Her eyes shot open in confusion, but she closed them again when she realized that she was actually snuggling against the chest of her boyfriend. '_Fiancé_' Katara had to remind herself. Katara began idly tracing the lines on Aang's chest as she began thinking about what happened last night.

Though everything had happened so quickly, she was not upset. She felt that it was the perfect time to consummate the relationship she had with Aang and she believed that he felt the same way. The only person that would not be happy with the idea that the two slept together would be Sokka. '_Hopefully he will never find out though'_ Katara stopped drawing on Aang's chest when she saw him stirring.

His eyes opened, and there was a shocked look on his face for a second when he saw a naked Katara laying with him, but it was soon gone and a look of happiness replaced it. He kissed her on the lips, "Good morning future wife."

Katara smiled, "Good morning future husband"

"Future husband…I like that."

"So do I."

Katara snuggled back down into his chest and resumed tracing patterns.

"Hey Katara?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you ok with, you know, what we did last night?"

Katara stopped again and looked up at him. "Of course I am. I would have said something last night if I wasn't. Why, are you?"

Aang's eyes widen, "Yeah, of course. I just sort of remembered the promise we made Sokka and, well, thought I would make sure."

"Aang, if I always did what Sokka wanted me to, I never would have even tried to stop him from kicking you out of the southern water tribe when we first met, we wouldn't have gone after you when the fire nation got you the first time, and I would have never been able to save you all the times after that."

"Very true. Have I thanked you for saving my life yet?"

"Well not recently…"

"Where have my manners been then?" Aang leaned down to give Katara another kiss, but made sure to stop before it got too heated. "We need to get up soon. I don't think Sokka would much appreciate the position we are in right now."

"But I'm so comfy right now; I don't think I would mind his wrath."

"That's easy to say when it's not your…um…livelihood he's threatening."

"True." With that, Katara got up to get started with her day.

Katara walked into the kitchen to see Toph sitting at the table wearing the same outfit that she was wearing the night before.

"Morning Toph."

"Morning Sugar Queen. Have fun last night?" Katara was startled by the exhaustion she heard in Toph's voice when she first spoke. Katara wondered how tired Toph was.

"Yeah, it was the best night of my life. Looks like you had fun also."

"Not really…Haru got really drunk and decided to take off into the city. I spent most of the night looking for him."

"Really? Where was he? Was he ok?"

"Yeah, he was fine. He was standing on top of a wooden block. I finally found him when he startled giggling so hard he fell off."

Katara restrained herself from busting up. "Well, you should get some sleep later. A tired Toph is bad for everyone. Would you like some tea?"

"Uh…sure" Toph listened to Katara's footsteps as she went to go get the tea. They sounded…lighter almost.

"Hey Sugar Queen…did anything happen last night?"

Katara faltered for about half a second, she then quickly tried to cover it up. "Yeah, I got engaged, remember?"

"No, I mean other than that…your footsteps feel…lighter almost."

"Well, being engaged has taken a load off of me. I feel lighter."

"I guess. You just didn't feel like this last night." Toph dropped the subject and Katara brought over her tea. Toph was still silently mulling over why Katara could be in such a good mood. She realized something and her eyes got big as she dropped her cup and stood up.

"Katara, where did you sleep last night?"

Katara choked for a moment on her tea. "With Aang in his room…why?"

"You did it…didn't you?"

Katara started to get nervous, "Did…what?"

"You and twinkle toes had sex!"

_(This is where the chapter would have ended, just in case you were wondering.)_

"SHHH! Don't say that so loud. Sokka will hear you!"

"I KNEW IT! Well, it's about time."

"I'm not sure…wait-what?"

"I had a bet going with Haru. He said you would wait till you guys got married, but _I_ said that there has been so much sexual tension between the two of you that one of you would have exploded if you waited that long. You were cutting it close, but still…it's about time."

Katara couldn't have blushed more if she wanted to, "you…you and Haru were placing bets on my sex life?"

"Of course…I won with Sokka on you two getting together, but I couldn't bet with him on this, that would have been too weird."

"uh…" Katara really didn't know what to say. She sat back down to drink her tea. At that moment Aang walked into the room and he could feel the awkward silence.

"Morning Toph, what…um, what's going on here?"

Katara spoke before Toph, "Aang, Toph found out."

Aang had a questioning look on his face, then he realized what she was talking about and he blushed also. "Ah. That would explain this awkward silence."

"No it wouldn't, the awkwardness was the fact that she and Haru had a bet going on how long we would go before having sex."

Aang couldn't find anything to say.

Toph took the opportunity to speak up. "Well, even though this has been fun. I'm very tired, and will be going to bed. I'll see you all later."

"Night Toph." With that Toph wandered off to her room, snickering to herself.

"How did Toph find out? Did she hear us?" Aang knew that Toph could easily feel all the vibrations throughout the stone house, so he had a bed made that sat off of the ground on wooden legs so she could sleep silently through the night. But if Toph spent the night in Haru's room, she could have felt everything.

"No, she was out all night. Apparently I was walking lighter and she figured it out."

"Huh, well, what do we do now?"

"I don't think she'll tell Sokka, but I think we should hold out on the sex till we get married for here on out to be safe."

Aang nodded, "I guess. That way we don't have to keep lying to Sokka also."

"Then it's agreed?"

"Agreed." Katara nodded and got up and got Aang a cup of tea. The two continued to talk about this and that for about ten minutes till Sokka came in.

Katara knew how bad of a liar Aang was, so the two of them decided to have Katara speak mostly for the two of them, till Aang felt comfortable enough to not spill the beans.

"Morning Sokka" Katara said with a smile. She handed her brother a cup of tea as he sat down mumbling some sort of thank you. Sokka had never been a morning person, but he started having to get up earlier when he married Suki. She was normally up before dawn, like Aang, and so Sokka had to quickly adjust his sleeping pattern, which he was not happy about.

"How is Suki this morning?"

"Still pregnant. I don't think she had any morning sickness today though. That's a plus." When Suki first found out she was pregnant, Katara told her she may have morning sickness through the first couple of months, but it normally stops by the third month. Suki was well into her third month, almost to her fourth, and she still was having morning sickness. Katara tried to explain to her brother that some women have morning sickness well into their sixth month, but he automatically assumed something was wrong. Only after four healers and Toph assured him nothing was wrong, did he finally calm down.

After about five minutes, Sokka finally started to wake up, "So, when did the two of you get back last night?" Sokka had directed this question toward Aang, who was being suspiciously quiet, but Katara spoke up, "Just about an hour after you and Suki. It was quite an emotional day, so we ended it early."

"Huh, so…why weren't you in your room last night about midnight?"

"Oh, I slept with Aang- in his room."

"Right, nothing happened, did it Aang?" Though Sokka had said this jokingly, he was getting suspicious. Aang still hadn't said a word and was staring more intently at his cup than ever before.

"Sokka, Aang isn't feeling very well. He, uh, lost his voice after all the excitement of last night." Aang looked up at Katara when she said this, then he looked at Sokka and nodded.

Though Sokka wasn't completely convinced, he decided to let the subject go.

"So, how much longer are the two of you staying in the Fire nation? If it isn't too much longer, Suki and I will stay also. I just want to make sure she gets back to Kyoshi Island before it becomes dangerous for her and the baby to move too much."

"There are a couple of meetings that Aang needs to be at in about a month, but then after that, we were going to go back to the Southern Water Tribe to plan the wedding. Right, Aang?"

Aang simply nodded. He and Katara had discussed the meetings and the wedding just that morning, luckily.

"Well, if you two don't mind, then, I think we will just hang out here till then."

"That's fine with me. How about you Aang?" Aang simply nodded again. He was getting rather tired of not being able to speak and was thinking that after another cup of tea he would suddenly feel better. He could blame the Avatar spirit for his quick recovery. He jumped up to get another cup of tea.

Sokka continued talking to Katara. "Have you seen Toph or Haru?"

"Yeah, Toph got in this morning. Apparently Haru had too much to drink and spent the night playing hide and go seek."

Aang sat back down and gulped down his tea in a matter of seconds. He then yelped in pain.

"Spirits, that is some hot tea."

"Hey, your voice is back." Katara was trying to keep up the charade.

"Yeah, I guess it just needed some rest. So Sokka, what are you and Suki planning to do for the next month?" Aang decided that the best thing to do would be to get the conversation away from him and onto a safe subject, like shopping, or food.

"Probably do some sightseeing. I might go to a couple of meetings in Dad's place if he doesn't mind, and Suki will probably do…something…I'm not sure."

"Well, speaking of meetings, I have one in a few hours, so I better get going." He got up, gave Katara a kiss on the cheek and ran off before Sokka could make any comment about it.

"What's got him so jumpy this morning?" Sokka asked.

"I dunno, how about the fact that you threatened his life for wanting to kiss me last night? On more than one occasion?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that…"

"You know you won't be able to do that after I'm married, right?"

"Right, but until then, I can be the paranoid brother worried that his sister is sleeping in her fiancés room every night."

"Please Sokka, you and Suki slept slept in the same tent all the time!"

"Yeah, but that is all we did!"

"That's all Aang and I do too!" '_Well, except for last night…but…that was a special occasion'_ Katara thought to herself.

"Fine! Fine, calm down. I'm just doing my job."

"Well…you're job gets on my nerves. I'm going to go get cleaned up and go shopping. See you later." Katara left in a huff. Sokka chuckled to himself. Aang was going to have his hands full with her. But somehow, he was always able to handle her short temper. Sokka settled back down and finished his tea in peace.

The next few weeks passed without much chaos. The meetings were going well and only once did the rebellion show up, but their plan wasn't well thought out and they ended up frozen against the ceiling thanks to a master water bender and the Avatar. The last week of meetings finally arrived and Aang was looking forward to the end of them so he could return to to a cooler climate.

Aang woke up the morning of the last day of meetings with Katara still lying beside him. He loved moments like this, when he could just watch her sleep. She always looked so peaceful when she slept. Aang felt her starting to stir and he moved slightly so she could stretch when she awoke. Katara opened her eyes, smiled at Aang, then paled severely and ran to the bathroom. Aang quickly followed her and heard retching. Aang hurried into the bathroom and rubbed Katara's back as she expelled her dinner. She finally stopped and Aang helped her back into his bed. He went to go get some tea for her and ran into Sokka on the way.

"Hey Aang, what was that noise earlier?"

"Katara. She's sick."

"Sick? What's wrong?"

"I dunno. She woke up and got sick. I made her lay back down and I was gonna bring her some tea."

"Well, hopefully it's just a quick thing. We aren't gonna be able to travel if she's sick."

"I know. But I have to be at this meeting today. Maybe I can show up then excuse myself just as it is starting…"

"No. Go to the meeting, we can't risk anything over these talks. I'll take care of Katara till you get back."

"You sure?"

"Of course. She's my sister. I can take care of her."

Aang nodded and continued down to fetch the tea. When he got back into his room, he saw Katara up and about.

"Katara, what are you doing?"

"Getting ready. There's a lot to do today, since we are leaving soon. I need to start packing."

"But, you're sick! You should be resting."

"I think it was just something I ate. I'm feeling better already."

"Still, I think you should rest for today. We can't travel if you're ill, and we are going to need to get Suki home soon."

"Fine, I'll rest for today."

Aang smiled and kissed Katara. "Thank you. Sokka said he'll, be here for you today. I need to go to this meeting, but I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Don't worry. I'll be fine."

_Man, I hope Katara feels better soon. And I hope you enjoyed this chapter enough to review. Please?_

_PS, I may have to up the ante on reviews in the near future, everyone has been so great, I'm having to post faster than I can write the story!_

_Till next time, _

_Nasecoeur_


	4. Chapter 4

_Hola! Well, it's official; the ante is being upped for reviews. Because I have so many people that are taking the time to write me awesome reviews, I'm having to update daily, which I wouldn't mind, if I had the whole story completely finished. So now, updates will occur at 20 reviews or weekly. I'm so glad and honored that I need to do this, as it means that people are not only reading my story, but they are liking it and that truly brings a smile to my face._

_Secondly, I finally came up with a new and improved title, "To Catch a Lie". Sorry it took me this long to think of one, but it won't be changing again.  
_

_Enough out of me._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: TLA. Sorry!_

_Enjoy!_

_Previously_

_Aang smiled and kissed Katara. "Thank you. Sokka said he'll, be here for you today. I need to go to this meeting, but I'll be back as soon as I can."_

"_Don't worry. I'll be fine."_

The meeting went well. Another treaty was finally signed and Aang was going to be able to go relax for a bit before more talks in a couple of months.

When Aang returned home, he found Sokka frozen to the ground. Aang unfroze him and asked him where Katara went. He said that about an hour ago, she was tired of lying around and wanted to practice waterbending. Sokka wasn't going to let her, so she froze him to the ground and left.

Aang sighed, nodded, and left to find his fiancé. He knew where to look. There was a lake with a waterfall about half a mile away. He arrived there in a matter of minutes and found Katara waist deep in the water. She was completely focused on her bending and he was able to sneak into the water and stand behind her without her noticing.

"What happened to staying in bed?" Katara jumped when she heard his voice and turned and attacked. Aang was ready for it and blocked her ice daggers by melting them, letting the water droplets fall over them.

"Damn Aang, you really scared me." Katara punched him in the arm and Aang just chuckled.

"Good thing I know you so well. That attack would have really stung had it worked. Now, why are you out here? I thought you promised to stay in bed?"

"I was, but Sokka kept coming in every five minutes asking if I was ok. I wasn't even able to sleep because of that. I got tired of it, froze him to the ground and came out here so I could be alone."

"Well, he is worried about you. Come on, let's go back. The meetings are finally over so we can come out here and waterbend tomorrow, as long as you are still feeling ok."

Katara hugged Aang and gave him a quick kiss. "Of course I'll feel alright. I probably ate something odd yesterday, that's all."

"Ok." Aang grabbed Katara's hand and helped her out of the water. Soon, the couple was walking back to the house, hand in hand, enjoying the sunset.

When they returned, Sokka was waiting for them. After about twenty minutes, they finally had him convinced that Katara was fine and he went to see how Suki was doing. Aang and Katara decided to make it an early night and headed off to Aang's room.

Aang awoke the next morning and looked over at where Katara should have been. She was missing though. He felt her side of the bed and noticed that it was still warm. He started down to the kitchen when he heard a noise from the bathroom. Looking inside, he found Katara, looking just as sick as she did the day before. He helped her back into bed again and made sure she was asleep before going to the living room to find the others.

He found Suki and Toph talking in the living room.

"Hey, where are Haru and Sokka?"

Suki looked up and answered "Oh, they went out to practice sparring. Haru wanted to learn some non bending moves and Sokka wanted someone to practice with."

"Oh."

"Where's Katara?"

"She's not feeling well again. It's weird. She was sick yesterday, and then she was fine, now she's sick again. I wonder if it was from the water in the lake…"

Suki looked at Toph, who looked at the ground, as if she was really paying attention to some vibrations.

"Hey Aang? Let me ask you a personal question. Have you and Katara…had sex?" Suki really hoped that he would say no.

Aang looked down, but Suki didn't think it was from embarrassment, it looked more like shame.

"Um…why do you ask?"

"Well…there's a chance that Katara could be sick because she had sex…I just wanted to eliminate a possibility."

"Yeah, we did. The night I proposed to her. But please don't tell Sokka. We sort of promised him a couple years ago that we wouldn't have sex till we were married."

Suki understood where the shame was coming from then. Aang, who never was a good liar, had been lying to Sokka for over a month. Suki nodded her head and went up to check on Katara with Toph in tow.

Aang sat down in the living room. He was racking his brain for any illnesses he could think of that could be caused by sex. It was at this point that he felt annoyed for growing up as a monk. It had kept him sheltered from many things in life.

Upstairs, Suki found Katara awake in bed, just staring off into space. Katara looked over when she heard the door open and smiled at Suki.

"Hey Suki. How are you feeling?"

"Oh, pretty good, thanks. Better than you from what I hear."

Katara's eyes widened. "You shouldn't be in here! What if I'm contagious? I can't get you sick!"

Toph waltzed over and placed a hand on her friends shoulder. "Sugar Queen, calm down, I've been talking to Suki and we don't think you're contagious.

Katara looked confused, "you mean you think you know what's wrong with me? I thought it was just something I ate…but I'm not so sure anymore."

Suki walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed. "Can I ask you a few questions?"

"Sure."

"Were you feeling a bit nauseous a few days ago? Before you actually got sick?"

Katara thought. "Yeah, when I woke up my stomach would be churning, but it got better as the day went on."

"Were you also tired more?"

"A little."

"Let's see…when you would eat…were they a couple large meals or several small ones?"

"A couple large meals."

"Have your breasts felt larger to you?"

Katara felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. These were the same questions she had asked Suki to see if she was pregnant. "Um…a bit, yeah."

"When was the last time you had your period?"

Katara really had to think. It had been at least a month, no…longer than that. "About six weeks."

"When was the last time you and Aang had sex?"

"…About a month ago…"

"Katara…do you see where I'm getting at?" Katara nodded.

"Toph…can you make sure? You might be able to feel something, but it could be too small still."

"No…I can feel it. It is extremely faint, but there is another heartbeat in there."

Katara couldn't believe her ears. She had another heart beating inside of her. Another life was being formed. She was pregnant.

_Ok, really quick note here. I just wanted to say that Katara being pregnant will be part of the story, but the main plot has still not occurred yet. So, if pregnancy fics aren't your thing, please stick with me just a couple more chapters! It will be worth it! I promise! :)_

_As always, please review! Ask me questions, lemme know what you think. I do try am PM reviewers back if they ask a questions or bring up an interesting topic._

_Till next time, _

_Nasecoeur_


	5. Chapter 5

_Hello all!_

_So I lied, I can't wait 20 reviews! I got a lot written on this story today and I wanted to post another chapter. I think I'll knock it down to 10 reviews for now, because I hate waiting for reviews just as much as you do, trust me! :) Thank you to everyone who has reviewed my story thus far. I already have some regular reviewers and I want to thank you specifically for always coming back!_

_On to the next Chapter!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: LTA_

_Previously_

_Katara couldn't believe her ears. She had another heart beating inside of her. Another life was being formed. She was pregnant. _

"Oh spirits…how am I pregnant? How did this happen?" After sitting in shock for a few minutes, the realization hit Katara that people would soon find out that she was with child and she started to panic. She had to find a way to tell Aang, and her dad, and gran gran, and….Sokka.

Katara hit her head with the palm of her hand in frustration. Her father, gran gran and Aang would all be excited, she knew. But Sokka…he was not going to be happy. Katara still remember the conversation the siblings had about a month ago when Katara accused Sokka of being overprotective and told him he had nothing to worry about. He was going to soon find out that she had lied, and hopefully she would still have a living fiancé by the time all of this was over.

Suki watched Katara pace across the room for a few minutes. She noticed how deep in thought the other girl was and recalled the day that she herself found out she was pregnant. It was one of the happiest days of her life. Everyone was happy for her; she received gifts and well wishes and congratulations of all sorts.

Suki looked at the expression on Katara's face. It was not one of joy, like Suki had once worn. It was one of panic. Suki marveled at the facts that there could be so many different reactions to something that happens to women on a daily basis.

"Katara. Stop pacing for a minute and look at me." Suki needed to get Katara thinking straight. She needed to tell Aang what was going on, and she needed a plan of action for dealing with Sokka. But Suki knew that the other girl would accomplish neither of these if she kept pacing.

Katara stopped and looked at her sister-in-law.

"I know you are worried and scared, but you need to go talk to Aang. Right now. He needs to know what is going on and the two of you need to figure out a way to tell my husband. You know as well as I do that the sooner you tell him, the less angry he will be."

"Yeah, but he will probably still castrate my fiancé when he finds out."

Suki felt awful. She could hear the worry in Katara's voice. She got up and gave Katara a hug. "Go talk to Aang. You need him right now and he will want to know the good news."

Katara nodded and silently went downstairs, leaving Suki and Toph up in Aang's room.

Toph turned in the direction she thought Suki was in. "How do you think Sokka will take the news?"

"I don't think he'll take it very well. But I think that he will let Aang live. And I will make sure that he doesn't harm Aang in any way. Aang and Katara are both responsible and they are both adults. Really, I think Sokka is unfair to Katara sometimes. I mean, she and Aang saved the world before they both turned 15, and Aang mastered all the elements and became a mediator before he turned 13. They both grew up a long time ago, and I don't think he wants to accept that."

"Well, he'll need to now, huh?"

"Yeah, that he will."

Aang was still deep in thought when Katara came downstairs. She was about to open her mouth when Sokka and Haru came into the house, all dirty and sweaty from sparring.

"Hey sis, you feeling better today?" The sound of Sokka's voice woke Aang up and he turned to face Katara.

"Yeah, feeling much better. Actually, I think I want to go get some air. Aang, wanna go for a walk?" She knew she had to tell Aang, but she couldn't tell him in the house, where Sokka could pop into the room at any moment.

"Uh, sure, yeah, a walk sounds good." Aang got up off the floor and took Katara's hand and the two of them walked out of the house.

The couple meandered through a couple of blocks before Aang said something. "So, did Suki and Toph figure out why you were sick?"

"Yeah, and I need to talk to you about it."

"Is it something bad?"

Katara wasn't sure how to answer that. A baby wasn't bad, no. In fact, Katara knew that Aang would be thrilled to know he was going to be a father. But, having to tell Sokka was going to be a challenge. "No, nothing bad."

"Well, what is it?"

Katara stopped walking when they reached a bench. She knew Aang might need it. "Well, Suki came upstairs and asked me a bunch of questions…"

"yeah…and?"

"And…we figured out that I'm," Katara took a deep breath to calm her nerves, "Aang, I'm pregnant."

Aang just stood there for a minute, not sure what to do. Then a huge grin found its way across his face and he picked up Katara and twirled her around in a circle.

"Pregnant? Like, a baby? That's great news!" Aang suddenly stopped spinning and placed Katara down before falling backwards onto the bench. "Pregnant…that means…we have to tell Sokka…don't we?"

Katara sat down next to him. "Yeah. I think the best thing we can do is tell everyone at the same time. I think if my dad and Gran Gran are in the room, Sokka won't freak out as much."

"Katara, I know I'm that Avatar and all, but I don't think I can take both Sokka and your dad at the same time if they freak out at the news."

Katara smiled. "I don't think my dad will freak out. I mean, Sokka was born only four months after my mom and dad got married. That means mom was pregnant before they got married. So, dad can't say anything."

"I never knew that. Why has Sokka never mentioned that?"

"Because he tries to forget it. He likes to think he was born six months early"

Aang chuckled. "Ok, that makes me feel a little better, but still, I really don't want to tell Sokka we lied to him."

"If you are worried that your days are numbered, Suki promised me that she would make sure no bodily harm would come to you from Sokka."

"Remind me to thank Suki. So, how can we get everyone together without it looking suspicious?"

Katara thought for just a minute. "I know! We will have everyone over for a feast! A feast celebrating the treaty and the fact that we get to go home."

"Yeah, then, as soon as dinner is over, we will tell them the news, and hope to survive the night."

Katara smiled, "I'm glad you agree. How about we have the dinner the night after tomorrow? That way there is enough time in-between where no one will get suspicious."

"Do you really think that we can go that long without Sokka finding out?"

Katara thought for a moment. "Yeah, I'll try and keep my morning sickness under his radar, and Suki can help me with that. And as long as we don't start planning anything while he is around, we should be fine."

Aang nodded his head in agreement. "Ok. But, how sure are you that you're pregnant? I mean, if we go through all of this, and you aren't…we would be risking our lives for nothing."

Katara grabbed Aang's hand and held it in her own. "I'm positive. Even though I've only been having morning sickness a few days, Suki asked me a bunch of questions that I had asked her to see if she was pregnant, and Toph is pretty sure she felt a heartbeat.

"Wow. A heartbeat. That is really amazing." Aang stood back up, pulling Katara with him. He wrapped his arms around her and she sighed and snuggled up against him. He put his face into her hair and she could barely make out his next statement. "I'm so happy right now. In a few months…we will be parents."

Katara just gave a content sigh and remained in Aang's arms a few minutes more. Finally she straightened up, "We should probably head back before Sokka starts to worry."

"Right." Aang grabbed Katara's hand again and they walked back to the house, the gravity of their situation seemed to disappear for those brief moments as they were content just to be together.

_As always, let me know what you think!_

_Till next time,_

_Nasecoeur_


	6. Chapter 6

_Hello all!_

_I have good news and bad news. Good news- this chapter is another 2-in-1. I want to get the story line moving, so hopefully this will help. Bad news...I have three separate family members in the hospital right now. Two are doing alright, one is not. Because of this, my updates may be few and far between for the next couple weeks. I gonna still try and update a chapter a week, but if I'm not able to, I apologize ahead of time._

_Enough about me- onto the story!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar:TLA_

_Previously_

_Aang grabbed Katara's hand again and they walked back to the house, the gravity of their situation seemed to disappear for those brief moments as they were content just to be together._

Back at the house, Suki and Toph were trying to discuss Katara's pregnancy, which was difficult since Sokka kept buzzing around wondering where Katara and Aang were.

Toph was getting irritated. "Listen Snoozles, Katara is a big girl now. She is a master waterbender and won't get herself into a situation she can't handle. And if she finds herself in a situation like that, she is with Aang, who, in case you have forgotten, is the _avatar_. So you should go play a game or something before I decide to bury you alive."

Sokka's eyes widened at Toph's outburst and he looked to his wife for support. Suki just looked back at him and finally said, "Toph's right sweetie, Katara knows what she's doing. You should let her make some of her own decisions from time to time."

"But I just don't want her to get hurt."

"I know. Sometimes though, she needs to know what that feels like so she will become stronger."

Sokka sighed in defeat. "Fine, but if they aren't back in…three hours, I'm going looking for them."

"Don't worry, if they aren't back in three hours, Toph and I will help."

Sokka grinned and kissed Suki. He placed a hand on her stomach and felt the ever growing budge that is located there. Sokka leaned in towards Suki's stomach and whispered, "Don't worry little one, I will always be there to worry about you, no matter what your mommy says."

"Ha ha. Now if you don't mind, Toph and I are trying to talk about something, but you keep interrupting."

"Fine," exclaimed Sokka in a dismissing voice, "Go on talking about, clothes, or makeup, or whatever. I'm gonna see if Haru is still around."

Toph stepped onto the ground. "He is in his room…reading it feels like."

"Thanks." With that Sokka left.

"Finally!" Suki exclaimed when she was sure Sokka was gone. "Now, what do you think will happen between Katara and Aang?"

Toph didn't miss a beat, "Well, Aang will be all excited at first, then freak out about Sokka killing him…then Katara will say something to calm him down and they will come back."

Suki just stared wide eyed and mouth agape. "You really know them, don't you?"

"Of course. They always do this when one of them gets in trouble or something, and it never fails…at least it hasn't yet."

"I don't think it will this time either. Katara and Aang are both smart, and responsible. They will make great parents."

At that moment, the aforementioned couple walked into the room. Suki looked up at them, "Well, you guys gonna tell Sokka?"

Aang and Katara just stood there, shocked by the abruptness of her question. Aang found his voice first. "We are gonna tell him, Hakoda, and Gran Gran all at the same time. The night after tomorrow."

Toph spoke up, "Why that date?"

"Well, we are gonna throw a feast. We will tell them it is in honor of the treaties passing and our leaving the fire nation for a while, and then we will just slip in with the news."

Toph snorted, "I can see that. Here Hakoda, have some potatoes, by the way, I knocked up your daughter."

Aang rolled his eyes. "Ha ha. Very funny. We just wanted to have a reason to get everyone together so we can tell them all at once and still keep it a surprise."

Suki nodded, "Ok, so what are you going to tell him if you get sick tomorrow morning?" She needed to make sure Katara had some plan, if Sokka found out before they were gonna tell him, all hell would break loose.

Katara thought for a minute, "Well, today, I'm gonna eat a bunch of really small meals so I always have something in my stomach. That should, hopefully, keep the morning sickness at bay. If not, I'll…hope he doesn't hear me?"

"Ok…well, I guess if that is the best plan you have, that's what you will go with."

Toph spoke up, changing subjects slightly, "Well, congratulations you two! Are you excited?"

Aang and Katara were slightly taken aback by this question. No one had asked them this yet. Aang spoke first. "Yeah, we're really excited. Although, I don't know what this means for the wedding. Do you want to wait till you have the baby?"

Katara shrugged, "I don't know. I haven't thought that far out. I mean, we could get married within the next two months or so…or we could wait about eight months. It really depends on the peace talks, huh?"

Aang nodded. He hated to admit it, but she was right. Even if the two wanted to get married sooner rather than later, which they did, if there were talks scheduled for that day. It would have to wait. The diplomats of the world saw Aang as the Avatar first, actually human second.

"But no matter what, I will be there for you if you need me. The world will just have to wait." Katara smiled and hugged Aang. Suki spoke up again, "I really hate to spoil the moment, but Sokka has been worried about you. You might want to go tell him you are home."

"Right. And, can we agree not to speak about this if Sokka is in the vicinity? That would probably be one of the worse things that could happen, if he found out that he was one of the last people to know that I'm pregnant."

Everyone agreed, and then headed off in their separate ways to continue out the day.

The next day went by without much distress. Katara had almost no morning sickness that morning, and Sokka was still clueless. Before Aang knew it, it was the day of the feast, and the second to last day he would spend in the Fire nation for a while.

"Katara, maybe we are making a mistake." Aang had been pacing the kitchen where Suki, Toph and Katara had been making food for the last two hours. "Maybe we should just have a really small wedding this weekend, and say the baby came a month or so early! I mean, Sokka would believe that!"

"Correction twinkle toes, he WOULD have believed that, if his own wife weren't just three months ahead of Katara. I think Sokka may notice if his wife and sister were giving birth a mere month apart." Toph couldn't help but grin as she felt Aang heart beat faster and is pacing speed up.

Suki punched Toph in the arm. "Shut it Toph, you're gonna give the Avatar a heart attack. Do you really wanna be responsible for killing the person who brought peace to the world?"

"Better me then Sokka." Toph was barely containing her laughter now and she stirred a pot full of sea cucumbers.

"Cut it out! Both of you! Sokka could walk in any minute!" Though she was doing a better job at hiding it than her fiancé, Katara was absolutely terrified. Never in her life had she lied like this to Sokka and she really didn't want to see the look on his face when he realized that she had broken his trust. "Aang, you have got to put this restless energy to good use. Why not go and see if Zuko's calendar cleared up? Who knows, he may have enough time to leave the palace and enjoy a nice dinner with his friends." Zuko was one of the first people that were asked to the feast. He had abruptly declined, saying he almost never had time to leave his quarters for more than an hour or so.

"Fine, but I'm not letting this go! I still think we could fool him. I know! Maybe not tell him about the baby for a month after he's born? Then...Surprise!"

"How do you know it will be a boy? She could be a girl you know." Katara stopped cutting vegetables to look Aang in the eye.

"Huh, I never thought of that. I just automatically assume he would be a he. I _would_ like to have a daughter." Aang's eyes clouded over slightly, thinking of everything he and his daughter could do.

"Yo, master of the elements, even I can tell you spaced out." Toph's taunting brought Aang out of his daydream. He smiled at Katara and closed the gap between the two of them to give her a protective hug. "You're right. We can do this. With Suki's protection, he will be happy for us." Aang wasn't sure who he was trying to convince, but it was working. He gave Katara a kiss on the lips and let her go so she could go back to preparing the feast.

"I think I will go talk to Zuko. He should be here for this announcement."

"What announcement?" Sokka had walked in, entranced by all the wonderful aromas that were emanating from the kitchen.

"Uhh..." Aang looked at Katara for help, but she was staring rather intently at the carrot she was chopping.

"Well, it's not for certain or anything..."Aang was speaking very slowly, hoping an idea would come to him before he ran out of words. "But...we were thinking of coming back to the Fire nation in a couple of months for a visit. It's so nice here, and because we are always here for meetings, several sights are going unseen."

"Uh huh, and you didn't get enough of this place when we were hiding here five years ago?" Sokka sighed and turned around. "Well, that's up to you and Katara. Let me know when the foods done." With that Sokka left the kitchen and Aang collapsed into the chair.

"Thanks for the help Katara, glad to know you have my back." Aang glared at Katara, not actually mad, but wanting to see how she'd react.

"You did just fine. Now go talk to Zuko or I'll make you stir the sea cucumbers and give Toph a break." Katara looked over towards Toph who was still barely containing her laughs from earlier.

Aang jumped to attention. "Yes ma'am! Right away Ma'am!" He ran up and gave Katara another kiss before giving a hasty salute and rushing out the door.

Suki sighed. "You will have your hands full Katara."

Toph snickered as Katara rolled her eyes, "You have no idea".

"Thank you all for coming tonight." Aang looked around at the table. Haru, Toph, Sokka, Suki, Katara, Hakoda, Gran gran, Zuko, and Mai all looked back.

"As you know, tomorrow is our last night in the fire nation for a while, at least for most of us," Aang looked at Zuko and Mai and smiled, "So since this was our last chance to all get together for a while, Katara and I decided to have a party. We also have an announcement." Though being the Avatar did have advantages, Aang would have given it and everything else up at this moment to not feel like he was going to puke. He rubbed his sweaty, yet clammy palms against the sides of his pants and did a quick glance around the table. Haru, Zuko, Mai, Sokka, Hakoda and Gran gran were all looking back at him with genuine interest. Toph was looking in his general direction, but he could tell her attention wasn't on what he was about to say. Suki was looking at Sokka, ready to judge his reaction and prepared to help calm him in any way she could. Then there was Katara. She met Aang's eyes and for the first time since her pregnancy was discovered, Aang could tell she was just as terrified as he was. He knew that Katara had fought her whole life for Sokka to not treat her like a little kid, and to give her responsibilities that she was more than capable of handling. Finally, when he does back off, she completely betrays his trust. Aang knew what he had to do.

"We, Katara and I...have decided to not have a long engagement and want to get married soon. Within the next month or so if possible."

"What?" though Toph was the one to exclaim, confusion was present on the faces of all the young females at the table, save for Mai.

"Yep, we thought about it a lot and think that it is the best thing to do. Well, that's all I have, let's enjoy the food." Aang quickly sat back down as people started talking amongst themselves. He did everything in his power not to look at Katara, even though he could feel her stares burning through the side of his head. When he finally did look up, the look on her face showed the mixed emotions that he himself was experiencing at the same time. He had to talk to her. They needed to figure out a new plan of action. Though Sokka could be childish, he was smart. He would notice his sister getting rounder, and when she did finally have the baby, he would notice a new person always being about.

Apparently great minds think alike, "Hey Aang, could I talk to you for a second?" Katara stood up and started to walk into the living room.

"Uh, yeah, sure." Aang followed his fiancé out of the dining room.

The living room and dining room were separated by the kitchen. The short walk seemed to take a century as neither party talked until they both sat down on the couch. Katara looked at Aang for a good minute, as if trying to read his mind.

"What are you thinking?" Aang didn't even know where to begin.

"I...I couldn't do it. I don't want Sokka to be mad at us, and I have known him long enough to know that him being mad is the only ending to this story."

Katara sigh and collapsed against the back of the couch. "I know what you mean. I thought I was going to pass out waiting to see how he would act. But we have to tell him Aang, we can't continue lying to him like this." Katara had a headache. She could tell that she was being more emotional than her usual self, and mixing her heightened emotions with the stress of the last week were taking their toll. She was exhausted. She brought her hands up to rub her temples and Aang caught one and pulled her so she lay against his chest. He kissed her on the temple and let his head rest on top of hers. "You know, I wasn't lying about wanting to get married soon. Maybe we could go back to our original idea. Let's get married in the next week or so, then in a month we'll tell everyone you're pregnant, and then we can wait a couple weeks after you have the baby to tell Sokka and he will think that the baby was just a month early." It was complicated and almost certain to fail, but Aang was willing to believe anything to get out of telling Sokka the truth tonight. to his surprise, Katara went along with the plan. "That may work. I mean, Sokka will be spending a lot more time on Kyoshi Island with Suki, and he hasn't seen enough brand new babies to know how they all look after they are born."

"So it's agreed?" Aang couldn't believe that they were actually going to go through with this.

"Agreed." Katara and Aang sealed their deal with a kiss.

Meanwhile, back in the dining room...

"So lemme get this straight...Aang and Katara had to go through all the trouble of making all this food, and convincing everyone to come here just to tell us that they were getting married soon? I knew that already! Anyone who looks at those two lovebirds would know that they would get married tomorrow if they had the chance." Zuko was a little annoyed that he had to leave his meetings and plans to come to dinner, when he was promised a huge surprise and that surprise never actually came.

"Actually Zu-zu, you were the only one that needed convincing, besides you need to get out of that stuffy palace more often." Toph was trying her hardest to stay engaged in the conversation, but she really wanted to know what twinkletoes and Katara were talking about.

"It is just such a hassle, especially with all the guards that have to go with me." Zuko pointed to the row of firebenders that stood at attention along the back wall of the dining room.

"You ARE the firelord, you could just ask them to stand down."

"Apparently there have been reports of uprisings. These don't seem to be the normal 'every once in a while' kinds either. They all seem connected, we just can't figure out how. Ergo, the protection." Zuko talked about the guards, not only as if they weren't actually there, but as if they were also completely incompetent.

Suki and Sokka were having their own conversation throughout this ordeal. Sokka was very excited about Katara getting married. Though he often gave him trouble, Sokka loved how much Aang cared about his sister and he knew that the Avatar would do absolutely anything to make sure Katara was safe and well-taken care of.

Suki looked towards the kitchen. "I wonder what's taking Katara and Aang so long. I think I'll go and check."

Toph stood up as well, "I'll go to, I need to give them grief for leaving their own party."

"Well, since were making a trip of it..."Sokka started getting up and Suki pushed him back down. "You sure you want to come? They have been gone a good five minutes now. A good LONG five minutes..." Suki trailed off letting Sokka's mind take over the conversation. He paled a bit and sat back down.

"On second thought, hurry back" He then continued to eat all the food on his plate, and in the general vicinity that was not already claimed.

Suki and Toph made it into the living room just as Katara and Aang were agreeing to not tell Sokka about the pregnancy. They quickly filled both Suki and Toph in on the plan.

Suki sat down as she tried to think through what Aang and Katara were thinking. "Are you sure you want to do this? I mean, if one single thing goes wrong, your whole plan will be lost."

"We thought about that. Since you both will be on Kyoshi Island, Katara and I will have a bit more time to cover ourselves if we need to." Aang looked to Toph who was being oddly quite.

"What do you think Toph?" He just needed her to be on board and agree not to spill the beans to Sokka.

"I think you are all idiots, but I'll just sit and let this play out."

Back in the dining room yet again...

"Man, how many benders does it take to find the Avatar?" Zuko said this only have jokingly, as the party had shrunk by more than half in the last 10 minutes, as more and more people went after Aang and Katara.

"Well, maybe it takes a non-bender." Sokka stood and up slowly passed through the kitchen. He saw everyone sitting on or around the main couch in the living room. He stopped and listened, trying to make out what was being talked about. He heard Toph's voice, "I think you are all idiots, but I'll just sit and let this play out." Sokka wondered to himself what they could be talking about. Maybe he would just sit and listen for another minute before letting his presence be known.

"Its agreed then," That was Aang's voice, "Sokka will never know Katara's pregnant."

'What the hell?' This was Sokka's final thought as consciousness left him and he hit the ground.

_Oops, Sokka probably wasn't supposed to hear that... _

_What do you think? I'm thinking about making all my chapters about this length from here on out. Good idea or bad idea? It may take me more than a day or two to update if that is the case, but I feel more accomplished this way. Lemme know!_

_Also, I'm sorry for typos. I checked over this chapter twice, but it was a difficult one to write, so if I missed something, just lemme know and I'll get it fixed._

_Until next time!_

_Nasecoeur_


	7. Chapter 7

_Hello all! _

_Thank you for all the well wishes and reviews! Everyone is doing better, and with only one still in the hospital, I finally have time to update again. As promised, this chapter is longer, as will all future chapters. Please enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar:TLA, I do own a ticket to the new movie though! :)_

_Previously_

_"Its agreed then," That was Aang's voice, "Sokka will never know Katara's pregnant."_

_'What the hell?' This was Sokka's final thought as consciousness left him and he hit the ground._

"Oh shit" Toph turned away from the conversation and headed towards the kitchen, "We have a problem, Suki come here." Suki followed Toph and gasped as when she saw her husband, passed out on the floor.

"What? What's wrong?" Katara made to stand up.

Toph and Suki each grabbed an arm of Sokka and pulled him into the living room. "It's Sokka. I think he knows."

Aang paled to a shade that humans shouldn't be and Katara fell back onto the couch. They both ran to Sokka's side as he started stirring.

Suki kneeled next to him, "Sokka? Sweetie, are you ok?"

Sokka groaned as he opened his eyes, "Is it true?" Instead of looking at Katara, he looked directly at Aang, who looked down, not knowing what to say.

"Yes Sokka, it's true, I'm sorry I...we-"Sokka sat up, cutting Katara off. He looked at Suki and Toph, "You both knew? Did anyone else?"

"No sweetie. We knew because we were the ones to tell Katara in the first place. You were gonna be the first other person to know."

"Yeah, until you, all of you, changed your minds. I'm going to bed." Sokka started to walk back to his room, which was connected from the other side of the dining room. Everyone else followed him.

As he passed through the dining room, he stopped and turned to the people still seated at the table, "Katara's pregnant. There, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Mai started coughing and Zuko patted her on the back. Hakoda and Gran gran were simply speechless. Haru broke out into a smile, then saw that this wasn't actually good news and he went back to playing with his food. Even the firebenders standing guard could feel the tension in the room.

Gran gran was the first to speak, "Is it true? Do I get to see both of my gran babies have babies?"

Katara simply nodded. Hakoda stood up and walked over to Aang. Aang wasn't quite sure what was going to happen, so he took a small step back. Hakoda shook his hand then turned and gave his daughter a hug, "Congratulations, I'm so happy for you." Katara felt tears slip through her eyes, "Thanks dad."

He held her by the shoulders and looked into her eyes, "And don't you worry, Sokka will come around."

The rest of the night finished uneventfully, Suki went after Sokka, but everyone else stayed and enjoyed the party. Congratulations were handed out again at the end of the party and everyone parted, ready to head home the next day.

Katara woke early to finish packing. The morning sickness was back, and this time with a vengeance, after an hour or so, she was ready to start her day. Walking into the living room, she saw Sokka gathering the few bags he and Suki had.

"You all ready to leave?" Katara was hoping he was talking to her again.

"Yeah, we're gonna get out of your hair." Sokka didn't even turn around when he spoke, "Come on Suki, we gotta go!" Suki came out of their room with her bag packed. She saw Katara and gave her a hug. "We'll let you know when we make it back to Kyoshi, congratulations again! If you need anything..."

"I know, I know, I'll let you know." Katara didn't know what she would do without Suki.

Sokka and Suki walked out of the house. Sokka didn't even look back as he close the door behind him.

Katara didn't know what to do. She could handle upset Sokka. Screaming his head off and letting everyone know how mad he was Sokka was an easy one to deal with. But quiet Sokka? Katara had never made him mad enough to completely shut her out like this before. She started to cry as Aang walked into the room.

"Katara? What happened? What's wrong?"

"Sokka...He left." Katara could barely get the words out she was crying so hard.

Aang began slowly, "Right...we are all leaving today. We've been planning on this for a while." He thought this may be the first time he could chock Katara's feeling up to the pregnancy.

"But...he didn't even say goodbye. He just left..." Aang was slightly taken aback. Sure, he didn't expect Sokka to congratulate them with open arms after they had been planning to lie to him, but they weren't going to see him for a very long time. He had to be furious to even think about not saying goodbye.

"You know what, don't worry about it. He just needs some time to process what happened last night. In a few days, we'll get a letter from him saying he forgives us and is excited for us." Aang couldn't believe how easy it was to lie to Katara. But as her tears slowed down, he knew he made the right decision.

"You're right. I over-reacted." Katara took a few deep breaths. "Where are Toph and Haru? Are they ready?" Before returning to the air temple, Aang and Katara were going to stop in Ba Sing Se to see the earth king, with Toph and Haru in tow. No matter how much Toph hated the big city, she hated walking across the earth kingdom to make it home more. They were going to catch a ride on Appa.

"Don't get your braid in a knot sugar-queen, we're here." Toph spoke while she entered the room, no bags were with her.

"Where are your things?"

"What do you mean?" Toph pointed her thumb behind her, where Haru was more than bogged down with a ton of bags. "What's the use of a boyfriend if he doesn't carry your stuff for you?" Aang ran to help him and within the hour everyone was packed up and ready to go.

As Aang was helping Katara onto Appa, he looked behind him and saw a person running towards the house. He was dressed in the same gear as Zuko's personal guards, the ones that had accompanied him last night.

Aang didn't have a good feeling about this, "Hold on guys, something's wrong." He left Appa's side to meet the guard.

"What's wrong?" It took the guard a few minutes to catch his breath.

"Firelord Zuko...needs to see you...castle over-run...in hiding..." Aang didn't understand.

"Hold on. The castle has been taken over? By who? Is Zuko ok? What about Mai?"

"They are fine right now. He needs you to go to him so he can fill you in. He said he thinks there is a rebel cell trying to overthrow everything you both have worked for this whole time."

Aang nodded and ran back to Appa. He could tell Katara knew something was wrong.

"Whats happened Aang?"

"I'm not sure. The guard said something about the castle being over taken and Zuko being in hiding. I'm going to go and get more information. You should come too. Let's get going." Aang didn't love the idea of possibly dragging Katara into a fight, but he thought it would be safer if she was with him instead of on her own.

Katara thought for a minute. She really wanted to go with Aang to talk to Zuko, but she knew that she needed to go to Ba Sing Se and warn the Earth King of this new development.

"No. You go on ahead. I need to go tell the Earth Kingdom what's going on."

Toph spoke up, "No Sugar Queen, you should go with Aang. Haru and I can warn the King." Aang was silently thanking Toph in his head.

"Right, but you are pretty useless in the air and I don't think Appa knows Haru well enough to take directions from him." Katara had a strong feeling that she needed to get to Ba Sing Se.

Even though he knew Katara was right, he didn't like the feeling of this. But they were running out of time. Aang finally spoke up. "We don't have time to argue about this. Katara, go on ahead to Ba Sing Se. If you run into any problems, go where ever you need to to stay safe. That is what's most important right now." Katara nodded and hopped off of Appa to give a kiss to her fiancé. This would be the first time in several years that they were going to be separated.

Aang broke the kiss and gave Katara a hug. He whispered in her ear, "Everything will be fine, I'll be right behind you to the earth kingdom, then we can go home." Katara nodded and hopped back on Appa. She looked at Aang one last time, "Yip yip". The last thing she saw was Aang fading into the fire nation terrain as Appa flew higher and higher.

Once his friends were safely in the air Aang turned back to the guard who had finally caught his breath. "Where is Zuko hiding?"

"I will lead you there sir."

Aang shook his head, "Thank you, but I can go much faster if I head there alone. I'm sure there is something else the firelord would need you to do in this situation."

The guard bowed, "Indeed sir. I hear you are aware of the secret bunker the previous firelord hid in during the solar eclipse? Zuko has taken residence there for the time being."

Aang had left before the guard finished his sentence. The guard smirked and casually walked towards town.

Aang made it to the bunker in record time. He remembered vaguely the route Toph had led him down before to reach the metal chamber that was hidden deep below the volcano. He was very thankful at this point in time to have the heightened senses that came with being the avatar. Before long, Aang had made it into the bunker and was facing a pair of giant metal doors. Aang knocked on the doors of the bunker, the same bunker that Azula had once waited for him in.

"Come in"

Aang opened the doors and walked in to see a very anxious Zuko pacing the ground. He stopped once he saw Aang and went to meet his friend.

"Aang, we have a problem."

"Who is it?" Aang didn't know if Azula or Ozai would be a better answer to that question. Either one meant a lot of trouble.

"I'm...not sure. My sister and Father are both still in prison, I personally went and checked today after the coup. I was lucky enough to be outside of the palace when some people came and arrested all my advisors and put the palace on lock down."

"Is that all the information you have? That sounds like the Dia Li, didn't they do that in the Earth Kingdom?"

"Right," Zuko started pacing again, "But I don't know how credible my source is. He had just barely escaped the palace before the lockdown, and I'm not sure how sound his mind is."

"Ok, so we know absolutely nothing for sure?"

"Right"

Aang sighed. He didn't want to have to do this again. He wanted to stop having to save the world so he could worry about Katara and their child. Worry about his family.

"Where are Mai and Li?"

Zuko stopped pacing again. "They were in the palace during the coup. Mai was able to get a message out saying that they were safe and were going to stay hidden to get more information. I wasn't able to respond to talk her out of it." Aang could see how distressed Zuko was. He couldn't blame him.

Aang clasped Zuko's shoulder, "Mai is an awesome fighter. I'm sure she and Li will be completely safe." Zuko nodded.

"Ok, so what happens now?" With so little information, Aang didn't really know where to even begin. How do you look for a person, or even a group of people, who were clever enough to overtake a fire nation palace without setting off any alarms or leaving any hints to who they are behind? "Have they given any demands...or anything?"

"No, they just said that they were tired of the peace. They waited for any nation to try and take the power away from the Fire nation, and it hasn't happened, so they are going to take all of the power from all of the nations."

"Where do you think they will go first? Earth or Water?"

Zuko thought, "Hmm, probably Earth kingdom, the Water nation is too much of a strong hold for any group to take by itself. They will need a huge army to even have a chance."

Aang agreed. "Katara, Toph and Haru are on their way to warn the earth king as we speak."

"You should follow them. I still have control over my city, and my citizens know this. We need to make sure that all of the other kingdoms keep control. I'll send a hawk to the water nation to fill them in, but if they are not expecting it, the Earth Kingdom will be vulnerable."

"Right, I'll go let them know." Aang started to leave, and then turned back, "I'll send Appa back here so Mai and Li can escape when they get out of the palace.  
Zuko shook his head. "No, he needs to stay with you. I'll make sure they get out of here. I have my ways."

Aang gave a quick smile and rushed out the door to make it to the earth kingdom as fast as he could fly.

"Are we there yet?" Katara sighed and gripped the reins of Appa tighter. If there was one thing she did not miss, it was flying with Toph.

"Well Toph, can you see again? I would think you of all people would know when we hit solid ground." Toph stuck her tongue out in, what she thought was, Katara's direction. She heard Haru giggle as she felt him guide her head so she was facing the intended target.

Haru decided a little tension needed to be lifted, "So Katara, why did you not want to go with Aang to talk to Zuko?"

Toph chimed in, "Yeah, is there trouble in paradise?"

Katara turned around and spoke through tense teeth. "No Toph, Aang and I are perfect, much better than you and me for sure." She took a deep breath to relax, "Actually I just had a really strong feeling that I needed to leave the fire nation and head to Ba Sing Se. I don't think I can even explain."

"Weird. What are you expecting to find?"

She shrugged, I'm not sure. It was almost like...someone was calling to me from there. The feeling is going away the closer we get to the city actually."

Toph stretched, "Well, that's good. A tense and aggravated Katara does not make a good flying companion." Appa bellowed, as if in agreement.

Katara smirked, "I bet Momo is still on my side, right Momo?" She turned towards the lemur, who was dead to the world, enjoying the fact something else was flying for him.

Haru pointed towards his right, "I can see the wall!" Katara looked that direction, and smiled. The sooner they could tell the Earth King what was happening the better.

Toph had thought of something, "Guys, what about Omashu? Since King Bumi gained control again, it is almost as strong as Ba Sing Se."

Katara hadn't thought of that. "Crap...Ok, I'll let you and Haru off here to tell the Earth King, then I'll Fly on to Omashu, let Bumi know, then tomorrow I'll come back and meet you here."

"But, what about that super strong feeling you were just telling us about?"

"I guess I'm gonna have to ignore it. Bumi needs to know what's going on."

"That is true" Haru looked out toward the city as the wall disappeared underneath the trio and Appa.

It was only a few hours later when Katara had finally landed in Omashu. She was surprised that there were so few people out and about in the city. She turned around and saw one of Bumi's Royal Guards heading towards herself and Appa. Katara smiled with relief and jumped off Appa to meet him. As she headed towards him, Appa started to growl. Katara turn around to see what was wrong. She had no way of knowing the guard she first saw had a rock in his hand, and she never had a chance to see his face before hearing a crack and falling into darkness.

_I'm sorry for yet another cliff hanger! I promise I will try my hardest to not have one in the next chapter._

_Also, I'm sorry if this chapter felt off. Something about it seems odd and I just couldn't figure out what it was._

_Anywho, as always, please let me know what you thought via reviews. All opinions are welcomed!_

_Until next time!_

_Nasecoeur_


End file.
